Before his career in television, Rafferty was a military policeman in the
United States Army. He was also a butcher in
Bolinas, California. His first national TV exposure was as a co-host on the
NBC reality series
Real People, which ran from 1979 to 1984. Originally, he was one of the five in-studio co-hosts before becoming a field correspondent ("roving reporter"), though he still made occasional studio appearances. Rafferty also made guest appearances on episodes of
Laugh-In in the late 1970s version of the show. ==Personal life==